


Faded Memories and Fish Hooks

by Elementhyde



Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Ficlet, Fluff, One Shot, Tumblr Prompt, sadithur
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-21
Updated: 2019-08-21
Packaged: 2020-09-23 03:54:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20333629
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Elementhyde/pseuds/Elementhyde
Summary: Sadie and Arthur find themselves stopping someplace familiar and spend some time fishing.





	Faded Memories and Fish Hooks

The temperature was dropping as the sun dipped below Three Sisters. Sadie and Arthur had been riding most of the day, on their way from Strawberry to Annesburg. Arthur turned back to Sadie, pulling up on Ulysses’ reigns.

“Hey, there is a cabin I know of up ahead. We can stop there for the night., it’s gonna get cold.”

“Don’t need to get fancy just for me.” Sadie countered.

“Ain’t fancy, I just know I’d rather sleep indoors if that was an option.” He shrugged his shoulders and spurred Ulysses on again. 

The cabin had been empty since Hamish had passed. Arthur spotted it as they came over the hill, his heart sank in his chest, the windows dark and cold. He knew better than to expect Hamish to be there, but it didn’t hurt any less. They approached the cabin, Arthur motioned for Sadie to follow him around the back. He dismounted and opened the small gate and ushering Ulysses into the pen, Sadie followed with Bob. They stripped the horses down and Arthur tested the door, locked. He pulled the lock-breaker out and quietly worked the lock.

“How you know the owner isn’t coming back?” Sadie leaned against the house watching Arthur work the lock.

“He died.” Arthur didn’t look up at her, his voice low. Sadie pushed off the house, her hand brushing his shoulder as she walked over to their tack and pulled the bedrolls. The lock clicked and Arthur opened the door, holding it open for her.

The inside of the cabin was musty, a layer of dust coated the interior. Arthur’s eyes scanned the room as Sadie wandered the cabin, stopping to look at a paper on the table. His eyes landed on the fish above the mantle, he sighed and walked the rest of the way into the cabin, closing the door behind him.

“This your veteran friend’s place?” Sadie looked over at Arthur.

“Hamish.” Arthur said, quietly. “Yeah, this was his place.” He shrugged out of his coat, putting it on a hook by the door, like he had done so many times before. “You can take the bed, I’ll get a fire started.”

He dropped down by the fireplace, there were a couple of logs still sitting there, dried out from their time indoors. He moved them to the fireplace, he stood and moved to the table, picking up the paper. The burning of Braithwaite manor was the front page article. He turned and struck a match and lit the corner of the paper dropping onto the logs in the fireplace. 

That had been a tough conversation to have.

\---

Hamish invited him in same as always, but instead of light-hearted talk he just sat down and pushed the paper toward Arthur. Arthur saw the headline, dropping his head, unable to meet Hamish’s eyes. 

“I ain’t a good man.” Arthur muttered. “You knew that.” He opened his mouth the continue, but Hamish cut him off.

“Is it true though, what they are sayin’?” Hamish prodded a finger at the paper, pushing it again closer to Arthur.

He picked up the paper, scanning through the article. Of course they had pinned the arson on them, it had been their fault, the rest of the article called out the number of other crimes of the Van der Linde gang. It all was true, Arthur felt his gut drop, the terrible things they had done he had told himself it was an ‘us or them’ situation, but the list was long and seeing them all in one place made it hard to look past what the gang had really become.

“They ain’t sayin’ anything that hasn’t happened, no.” Arthur was quiet, he stood near the door. “I’ll see myself out. Sorry t’bother ya.” He opened the door and stepped out, his chest tight.

“Arthur!” Hamish shouted after him, “Damnit boy, get back here!” He pushed up from the table and followed him outside.

He sat in the saddle, unsure why he stopped. He didn’t turn to look to Hamish, his eyes locked to the floor. He didn’t know why Hamish had stopped him, maybe some part of him really hoped that he wasn’t completely irredeemable, but he wasn’t going to hold his breath for that. He was Arthur Morgan, murderer, outlaw, thief. Wanted in 5 states, notorious lieutenant of the Van der Linde gang.

“We were gonna go fishing, where you goin’?” Hamish’s expression seemed tired, a small smile on his face, but sadness filled his eyes. It was that look, it was the look people got when they recognized him. A mixture of fear and forced courtesy, he sighed.

“You don’t have to do this, I promise you’ll never see me again.” Arthur pulled gently on the reigns, turning the horse away.

“Don’t you tell me what I don’t have to do.” The sadness was replaced by anger, the fire biting behind his eyes. Arthur looked back, Hamish has disappeared into the house, emerging a few moments later with a rod in his hand. He brandished it at Arthur. “Get in the god damn boat!” Arthur dipped his head and swung down off the saddle, silently heading toward the dock.

\----

Arthur chuckled darkly, watching as the paper burned. The logs were dry enough to start and he turned to Sadie who was searching through the cupboards, she stopped and turned to him.

“Ain’t gotta do that, bed’s big enough for both of us,” she paused, “and we both could use the rest.” 

“I’ll be fine on the floor.” Arthur met her in the kitchen. “I’m gonna see if I can’t catch us some fish for dinner.” He put his hand on her shoulder. He would never say it, but it was nice that she looked out for him. She watched him as he walked out the front door. The cold air rushed in around him, Sadie hadn’t realized how quickly the fire warmed the cabin and a shiver ran down her spine. She glanced to the back door, Arthur’s coat still hung there, She grabbed it and followed him out. He stood by the lake. The sun had fallen behind the mountains, it threw a beautiful pink haze over the lake, the wind bit into her as she closed the door behind her. 

“You left your coat.” His shoulders stiffened momentarily, he turned and took the coat from her. His eyes wandered from the coat to Sadie. The cold bit her nose and fingers. She hadn’t invested in a heavy coat since joining the gang, there hadn’t been much need the wind caused her to shiver slightly, goosebumps running up her neck. He draped the coat on her shoulders, she looked up at him.

“You need it more than me.” Sadie noticed now, looking at him, the steam lifting off him. She shook her head, moving to shrug out of the coat, she felt his hand clasp around the front of the coat. “‘Specially if yer gonna help me catch dinner.” He released his grip and turned back to the lake, baiting the hook on his rod. 

The coat was warm, Sadie was surprised at how well it kept the heat in, she looked down at it, the fur in the lining was familiar, she couldn’t quite place her finger on it, but it wasn’t soft enough for rabbit...something heavier. 

“I ain’t much of a fisher, I’m better with a gun.” Sadie pulled her arms through the sleeve of the coat.

“Good a time as any t’learn.” Arthur held out the pole, she huffed taking the pole from him, the sleeves making it difficult for her to maneuver the rod. Arthur watched her out of the corner of his eye as she struggled with the rod. “Put your arms out.” He took the rod back from her, and she stuck her arms out as told, her face less than thrilled. He gently rolled the sleeves, exposing her finger through the thick fur lining.

“Thanks.” She took the rod back from him.

“You know the basics? Or ya need me to show ya how the rod works?” He bent down and picked up the lantern on the ground next to him, lighting it and setting it back on the ground. He pulled out a cigarette and used the match to light it as well before flicking the matchstick into the water.

“I am just too impatient, I know how t’fish, just never want to wait for a bite.” Sadie offered, shrugging her shoulders slightly. Arthur barked a laugh.

“Two sides of the same coin.” He shook his head and threw and arm around her shoulder. “I’m gonna let you in on a lil’ secret Hamish shared with me.” He pulled a bottle of whiskey out of his satchel, Sadie stifled a laugh. 

“I see he was a good teacher.” She took the bottle from him. The warmth from his body seeped into the coat, she took a swig from the bottle and the warmth from the whiskey snaking down her throat. She handed the bottle back to him, he straightened up and moved toward the water. Sadie found herself missing his warmth as he pulled away. 

“That he was.” He took a swig from the bottle, waving her over to the water’s edge. “C’mon now, the fish ain’t gonna catch themselves.” 

They both cast their lines into the water, the pinks from the sky fading into purples and blues as they waited for a bite. They shared a bottle between them, talking quietly about life, about all the shit they had endured. Sadie’s line dipped beneath the water first, the fish taking the bait, she pulled back hard setting the hook. She fought the line, slowly bringing the fish in, Arthur watched as she put all her weight into the fight.

He missed the first tug on his line, the rod set aside against a rock, bottle to his lips. It fell to the ground with the second tug and he caught it just as it started to pull along the shore.

“Ope! Got me one too.” He muttered, grabbing for the pole. The pulled in two decent sized salmon, each of them comparing their haul. A smile crept across Sadie’s face in the darkness as she pointed out how hers was bigger.

“We should get these cooked up before it gets too late.” She took the fish from him and started toward the cabin. “You’ll catch cold if we’re out here to much longer.” Arthur scoffed from behind her, picking up the rods, tackle, and lantern he followed her back to the cabin.

“It ain’t that cold out here.” He watched her walk with purpose back to the house, his coat hilariously long on her, flutter behind her as she walked.

He wasn’t going to say that the warmth of the cabin wasn’t welcome. He kicked the mud from his boots and stepped inside. Sadie had hung his coat by the door, her boots discarded by the door, his chest tightened. She hadn’t known Hamish, only heard the stories he told, but she still respected his memory enough to make sure not to track mud through the man’s house. He smiled, bending over, he picked them up, he knocked them against the outer wall of the cabin, placing them back where he found them inside the door.

“You know how to cook them fish?” He joked as he joined her in the kitchen. “I could show you a few pointers.” 

“I’ve seen what you eat, I ain’t sure you know how t’cook ‘em either.” She chided. He pushed her gently with his hips. The gentleness caught her off guard and she looked up at him. The smile on his face, she couldn’t help but stare, it reached his eyes and she found herself smiling back at him. 

He worked quickly with the fish, removing the bones and prepping it for the fire. Sadie watched him, he pulled some herbs out of his satchel, tucking them into little slits he cut into the meat. She sat down at the table, watching him work, he never failed to impress her. She rose and took a pan off the wall, it was old and worn. She turned it over in her hands, wiping the inside of it with her shirt to clear the cobwebs. She put it on the counter next to him and turned to look about the cabin. 

So many memories were left here, she had never pressed Arthur for what happened. Hamish had been his friend, she knew something had happened when he came back that last time. He looked hollow, so distant for a time. She made her way around the room, glimpsing more into the life of Arthur’s friend. He had finished his prep on the fish, panning them up and placing the pan in the fire.

“Should be ready to eat in a few minutes.” He wiped his hands off on his pants.

“Who taught you about the herbs?” Sadie sat down at the table.

“Bessie.” He joined her. “Back when it was just the five of us. I helped a lot more ‘round camp.”

“What was she like? Y’all talked about her so much.” Sadie rested her head in her hand. 

“A pistol.” He looked at her, warmth in his eyes. “You remind me a lot of her. She was a hell of a woman.” Sadie felt her ears get hot.

“Ya ain’t gotta say that.” Sadie muttered, turning away from his gaze.

“I ain’t gotta say anything.” He reached across the table, taking her hand in his. “You really do, everything about ya. I see that same fire and I understand just how Hosea felt.” He squeezed her hand. “You’re one hell of a woman Mrs. Adler.”


End file.
